Epic expects its energy demand to double by 2028

Epic will pay up to $10.3 million to help cover the total cost of a $21 million substation and high-voltage power line in Verona to help meet its growing energy needs, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

American Transmission Co. said a 138-kilovolt line and substation are needed as backup for Epic's Verona, Wis., campus in case the primary connection fails. An ATC spokesperson told the Wisconsin State Journal that the company's future growth and subsequent energy needs could exceed the current line's capacity.

Epic's current peak energy demand is 15.5 megawatts, but as it continues to expand, the EHR giant expects it to nearly double by 2028. That would place Epic among the state's largest electric customers, Todd Stuart, executive director of the Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group, told the publication.

The remaining $11 million for the project would be funded with fees paid by the nearly 5 million energy users in the ATC service territory, which includes the eastern two-thirds of Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. ATC filed an application for the $21 million project with Wisconsin utility regulators on Oct. 15.

Epic has 2.2 megawatts of on-site solar panels, and it owns a wind farm in the nearby city of Waunakee, Wis., that can generate up to 9.6 megawatts of power. However, the massive campus still needs to connect to the power grid to run its computer servers and support its more than 9,500 on-site employees.